Health Minister confused about his role

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Member for Gaven Dr Alex Douglas MP says Health Minister Lawrence Springborg  does not understand  that health is also a business.

During Health Estimates,  when asked by Dr Douglas about the efficient use of funds within his budget, the Minister answered using micro-managing examples.

“ A line of questions from myself elicited essentially the same type of response each time from the Minister yet each was a distinct macro-management issue,” Dr Douglas said today.

“I informed Mr Springborg that from the $13.6 billion budget, there is a labour component cost of $7.6 billion for 72,795 employees who pay a total of$1.6 billion in PAYG tax to the Commonwealth annually.

“Minister Springborg also stated that he had never considered these matters in this manner, yet he then said he was considering privatisation and he is supposedly managing a very big secondary business.

“The Minister was unable to give any relativities of funds coming back to the State, from the Commonwealth in relationship to the contribution of the state towards federal income tax collection. His confidence was undiminished. 

“There appears to be  confusion in the manner in which the Minister is managing this business. 

“His role is macro-management not micro-management. He gave examples about HIV management and a $1.6 million advertising program.

“The Minister fails to acknowledge that Queensland Health  has budgeted a 3% increase in wages and salaries  – a $221 million increase , but  $88 million will be paid to Canberra in PAYG tax.

“The point that is lost on the Minister and his LNP Government  is they are funding Canberra a significant amount of money out of the Health Budget.

“In total Canberra will receive about $1.7 billion from Queensland Health in  2014/15 for PAYG tax.

“We could build a lot of hospitals with that money if it came back as a tied grant.

“When I asked the Minister if  he would consider stopping or divesting money from the meeting targets advertising program to safety issues such as the PAP smear registry failure,  the 200 missing patient problem and the 48,000 Gold Coast University Hospital patients who have had unreported x-rays,  he said no money could be divested. Queensland Health  would use other means.

“The Minister could not explain other significant matter about his difficulties with the Commonwealth but stated he had never looked at it using tax payable as a guide in return for funds from the Commonwealth.

“The real issue is that this was a budget estimate process in which  the Minister did not use  critically important budget documents in a formal business sense.

“It is about time that the State runs Queensland Health as a proper business rather than  just expecting the Commonwealth to contribute ever increasing amounts but the state not providing any useful information of the utilisation of funds within its own budget. This is no guide as to  why Queensland Health should claim greater funds from the Commonwealth.”

Dr Douglas is Palmer United Party, Queensland Parliamentary Leader.